Rescue Dawn

 
Starring:
Christian Bale, Zach Grenier, Pat Healy, Marshall Bell
Directed by:
Werner Herzog
Written by:
Werner Herzog
Genre:
Action War Drama
Year:
2006
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Runtime:
126 minutes
Media:
Cinema
Imdb:
tt0462504
Rating:
7
 
Synopsis

After having his A-1 Skyraider shot down in Laos whilst on a covert bombing mission, Flight Lt. Dieter Dengler (Christian Bale) is captured, brutally tortured and beaten, and finally is transported to a prison camp in the middle of the Vietnamese jungle. At this camp he meets fellow American pilots, also prisoners of war. Dengler arrives with a spirit of resiliance and brings hope to the other prisoners with a plan for a prison breakout.


Review

Rescue Dawn is a feel good survival movie, a struggle to stay sane with the hardships surrounding the prisoners and the hazards of the neighbouring jungle environment.

The movie is both writen and directed by Werner Herzog. This is one of his first English movies but he has done well with direction and has utilized the dramatic locations with excellent cinematography in the dense, mountinous Laos jungles. The authenticity of the setting adds to the realism and hopelessness the prisoners must have been feeling.

The actors did a great job, with an outstanding performance from Christian Bale. For their roles in the movie, Bale, Zahn, and Davies had to lose a substancial amount of weight. This however should be the norm for Bale who dropped 63lbs to play his role in "The Machinist". Rescue Dawn required subtle acting techniques and I felt that all the prisoners achieved this well and allowed Bale to shine in his lead role.

Rescue Dawn is a great war survival film with a great story, acting and excellent creative skill from Herzog. Well worth a trip to the cinema.

Submitted by SittingBull on Wed, 11/07/2007 - 20:43.